You're Somebody Else
by OkamiShadou98
Summary: When one of Willow's spells backfire, Buffy is turned into a baby for twenty-four hours. But Willow's not stressing. How hard could it be to take care of a child for one day?
1. Chapter 1

_A/N - This piece was requested by Boris Yeltsin who asked for a fic where Buffy was turned into a baby which explored her friendship with Willow. I hope you enjoy and let me know what you think!_

* * *

Slaying was seriously overrated. Sure, the whole saving the world while uttering witty puns was cool but mostly slaying was running around town, tripping over curbs or low tombstones, before finally managing to catch the demon you had been chasing only to find out it was one of those weird species that sweated toxic green slime.

And as Buffy had found out tonight, that green slime was terrific at staining clothes.

Walking home to Revello Drive covered in the mucus-like liquid had so not been on her to do list. She had anticipated going on a light patrol and picking off a few vampires before returning home in time to catch some late show before bed. The only highlight of her night had been the fact she now smelled so terrible not even Spike had been willing to stick around.

As the bleached menace had done every single night since professing his love to her, he had shown up at precisely the wrong time during her patrol. He had left in a hurry after getting a whiff of her thankfully.

Rounding the final corner, she sighed to herself. Slime shower aside, she was not too excited about returning home. Her mother had been gone for two months now, sixty long, pain filled days chock full of relatives calling with condolences, fighting with Dawn, dealing with the banks, fighting with Dawn, nosy neighbors, insurance claims, and fighting with Dawn.

Oh and the whole Glory thing had still not been resolved.

It was like a massive weight was building itself upon her shoulders, each new issue causing her knees to buckle just a few inches more. She had to stay strong though… for _everyone_.

And that was the issue really. How could she grieve when so much was riding on her maintaining her strength? One misstep, one moment of weakness and she could lose Dawn - could lose the _world_.

She knew her sister resented her for her lack of visible sadness. The young girl was often in a state of melancholy, drifting from one task to another with none of the fire she had once possessed. The only time Buffy saw any real emotion in Dawn's eyes was on the increasingly rare chance they ended up in the same room together. The anger her younger sister felt was understandable. She had found out she was not human and had her mother torn away only a few weeks later. How could she fault her when the poor girl was not even sure of who she was? Literally.

Willow and Tara had unofficially moved in shortly after the funeral and they had been more than helpful around the house. What the two lacked in adulting they more than made up for in an undeterred cheerful attitude.

They were the only ones who could get Dawn to smile anymore.

Her musings were brought to an end as she reached her house. Fixing on a smile and trying to ignore the slime dripping down her shirt, she unlocked the door and enter.

"Dawn?" she called, pulling off her shoes - the only piece of clothing that had escaped the goo.

"In here!" Willow said, excitement pitching her voice higher than normal.

Buffy followed the voice, ending up in the kitchen. All the lights were out, though every available space on the kitchen counters had been covered by lit candles. Willow, Tara, and Dawn were sat around the island, surrounding a small cauldron and several bunches of herbs.

"I hope this isn't dinner." Buffy said lightly.

Dawn shot her a dirty look and turned back to Tara. The blonde smiled apologetically, noticing the tense exchange between the two sisters.

"Oh no. We're doing some spellwork." Willow gestured to a massive book she had opened on her lap.

"We thought maybe we could teach Dawn some simple spells, just stuff that could keep her safe until we deal with Glory." Tara added quietly. "Nothing dangerous obviously."

It was a good idea and Buffy wondered why they had not thought of it earlier. Amongst the entire group, Dawn was the most ill fitted for a battle. She had the Slayer strength, Spike was a vampire, Anya had a thousand years of knowledge, and Xander was not too shabby in the planning department. Teaching her sister a few spells made sense really. If anything happened to them, Dawn would be on her own.

"Do you guys need an extra hand?" she offered.

To her dismay, Dawn got up abruptly and stalked out of the room without a word. Willow was on her feet in an instant, hurrying after the angry brunette.

Buffy's stomach sank at the dramatic reaction her words had elicited. Things between the two of them, far from getting better, were falling apart in a truly spectacular fashion. It also hurt to know that it was Willow comforting her sister instead of herself.

"It's not your fault." Tara offered, looking down. "Dawn's just… difficult."

"She's my sister. I should be the one making her feel better." Not the most adult description of how she felt but it still held. "Don't get me wrong, I'm so thankful for what you and Willow have been doing. Really. It's just, God it sounds terrible but I miss the way things were before all this."

When battle lines had been drawn between the Summer siblings, everyone in the Scoobies had had no choice but to pick sides. Some, like Anya, had distanced themselves from the issue but for everyone else, the tension was a tangible barrier.

It had been natural that Willow fall unconsciously on Dawn's side of the divide. The young girl needed guidance and if she refused Buffy, Willow was the next logical choice. But Buffy needed Willow too, as utterly selfish as it sounded. She was so new to all of this, a child trying to operate in the adult world. Willow had been her pillar for so long, the person who had been there when Angel had left, when she had nearly killed Faith, every single time.

To lose that crutch now when she needed it most…

Slaying may be seriously overrated but it did not hold a candle to adulthood.

"I don't think it's terrible to wish for things to go back." Tara said, watching the blonde speculatively. "Sometimes I yearn to be back home." At Buffy's disbelieving look, she laughed. "Some of my family members may have had skewed ideals but it wasn't all bad. My mother was exceptionally gentle and I miss my brother too. But I have those memories with me now and that's what gives me strength whenever I falter."

"I'm not sure memories are going to be enough." Buffy replied sadly, looking down at the mess of spell ingredients littering the kitchen island.

Tara dipped her head in acknowledgement. "Maybe not, but life was never meant to be easy."

"It wasn't meant for fashion obsessed gods either." She replied with a hint of a smile before collapsing onto one of the stools despairingly. "I have this terrible feeling we're not all going to make it." she said softly. "If something happens to me or Dawn before we get a chance to push through all this anger… I'll never forgive myself."

"I'm sure you and Dawn will reconcile. It's just been difficult for her to adjust to all these new… changes. It doesn't help that we all seem so well composed about everything. Her world is falling apart right now."

"And ours isn't?" Buffy said sharply, though her anger was not directed towards Tara. "Everyone's risking their lives every time they leave the house. We have no idea how to beat Glory or even if it's possible. As much as I want to sit on the couch with her all night and watch teen movies, I can't."

The conversation was rapidly shifting to a place neither woman was keen on exploring with the other. They were not the closest of the gang. Sure, they worked together but rarely did their friendship stride into the sort of intimacy usually shared by close friends.

"Dawn senses that you're holding back from her. She is a remarkably perceptive young woman." Tara ventured, feeling out of her element. "Perhaps if you shared the burden with her a bit… let her see you grieve as well…"

Buffy looked up miserably, trying to ward off the tears that threatened to form. "No, _I can't_." she stressed. "Because if I do, I'll fall apart."

Uncomfortable silence blanketed the room at that revelation. Distantly, the sounds of Willow and Dawn talking in the other room could be heard. Abruptly, Buffy got to her feet.

"I'd better shower and get this stuff off." she pointed to the slime which Tara had been too polite to point out. "Make sure Dawn doesn't stay up too late?"

"Of course."

"Great. Really, thank you Tara." She hurried out, not giving Tara the chance to respond.

She had not intended to quite literally dump her emotional baggage on the poor girl. It was just, this was the sort of thing she usually spoke to Willow about. Unfortunately, Willow and Dawn had been glued to the hip recently. Tonight had been her breaking point though. The fear, the uncertainty, it was finally becoming too much for her to deal with.

Bypassing the living room on her way to the stairs, she saw Willow hugging Dawn, the two of them whispering together. The scene caused her to freeze, gaze frantically bouncing between the genuine grin Dawn was sporting to the loose embrace Willow had her in.

Ice was cascading down her back, skin prickling as a wave of coldness enveloped her.

She was _drowning_.

Her run up the stairs was clumsy, the terraced steps seeming to shift and move under her feet. She made it to the bathroom, barely, locking the door and sagging against the wood. Her slimy clothes stuck to the wooden barrier but she could care less about the mess.

It hurt almost more than she could bear to see her closest friend comforting her sister. She was trying so damn hard to get everyone through this but her relationships were suffering. This was why Slayers did not have connections… how could she keep them when so much of her energy was used for fighting evil?

Stripping off her clothes, she showered quickly and went to her room. She curled under the blankets, damp hair sprawled across the pillows.

What she wanted, more than anything, was for everything to go back to the way it was. Fighting the Master seemed like child's play when compared to this… this absolute mess. Back then it had just been the Scooby Gang, no interlopers. She missed those moments dearly, the late night research meetings in the library, sneaking out of class, even trying to study. Life had made sense back then at least.

"I wish we could go back." she murmured to herself, hiding her head under the pillows.

With her head covered, she failed to see the flash of blue light that briefly illuminated the room. When it receded, she was fast asleep.

* * *

Back downstairs, the two Wicca frowned as the spell they had tried to perform failed. They had followed every direction to the absolute letter, leaving nothing to chance.

"Are you sure we did this right?" Willow asked anxiously, re-reading the spell book they were using.

"It should have. The spell makes one wish come turn for twenty-four hours. It should have worked." Tara looked thoughtfully into the still smoking pot of ingredients.

Everything inside was burned to ash, meaning something had happened. Why the desired results had not been achieved, she did not know.

"Dawn, trying wishing for something aloud." Willow set the book aside with a tired sigh.

"Um… I wish I had pancakes." She said hesitantly.

Everyone waited but no breakfast food appeared.

"Interesting." Tara murmured, picking the spell book up.

The spell had been rather straightforward. In simple terms, it granted wishes. Nothing powerful of course, this was only a basic spell. But it was useful nonetheless.

Or it would be if it actually worked.

"Can we try again tomorrow? I'm tired." Dawn rubbed hard at her eyes.

Tara softened. People who were new to magic typically had little stamina when it came to spells. "Of course honey. Why don't you go to bed and me and Willow will clean up."

The three parted, each contemplating why the spell had gone awry. This lapse in attention meant no one though to check on Buffy before bed. Willow thought she detected a hint of residual magic when she was brushing her teeth but dismissed the notion quickly, decided it was merely left over from the spell they had tried downstairs.


	2. Chapter 2

_A/N - Another chapter already? Actually, I wanted to upload this entire fic tonight. I keep losing power though because of thunderstorms so two is the best I can do. The rest of the story will be released tomorrow._

The day began, as per usual, with the screeching of Dawn's alarm clock. The high pitched whine would not be halted by silly things like walls, awakening every person in the home.

Willow groaned, fruitlessly trying to block out the noise by hiding under her pillow. She felt the mattress shift besides her as Tara got up to start the day. As much as Willow enjoyed her girlfriend's initiative, it was way too early to be awake.

The alarm was still going, the screaming reaching fever pitch.

"How can she sleep through that?" Willow moaned, tossing the pillow off the side of the bed and struggling to her feet.

"Willpower?" Tara offered, shrugging a robe on over her pajamas before opening the door and making her way to Dawn's room.

The screeching cut off abruptly, blissful quiet descending to soothe frazzled nerves. Willow contemplated going back to bed now that peace had been restored. The mattress certainly looked inviting, blankets still radiating warmth, but her mind was now raring to go. It was an unfortunate side effect of being inquisitive - once her head got going, there was no way to stop her racing thoughts.

Regretfully, she made the bed and moved to the closest to pick out clothes. Tara had disappeared downstairs to start breakfast. She could hear her girlfriend talking with Dawn, the two chuckling at something.

One person was unaccounted for though…

Willow rolled her eyes good naturedly, realizing Buffy must have once again forgotten to set her alarm. Her best friend was so calm and collected during slaying but in the real world? Let's just say there was room for improvement.

After dressing in jeans and a pink sweater Xander had bought her several years ago for her birthday, she walked across the hall to Buffy's room. The door was closed but Willow paid it no mind, cracking it open and peeking inside.

The curtains were closed, leaving the room in semidarkness.

"Hey sleepyhead, it's time to get up." Willow marched across the room to the window. "Dawn has to leave for school soon."

The only response she received was a quiet murr, the noise oddly high pitched.

Shrugging at the lack of actual words, Willow deftly opened the blinds, light spilling forth brutally. She stepped back hurriedly, having forgotten the morning sun shone directly into the room. Her vision was fuzzy, black spots dancing across her eyes and she blinked several times to clear them.

When her gaze fell on Buffy's bed, she blinked again.

And again.

And again.

"Tara?" she called out in a squeaky yell, not taking her eyes off the bed.

The blonde appeared within moments of being called, having detected the panic in her girlfriend's voice. She stepped into the room, immediately going to Willow's side.

"Honey? What is it?" she asked, a hand cupping the redhead's face and turning it so she could get a look at wide green eyes.

Willow's head moved but her pupils remained fastened somewhere to their right.

"Bed." she said, voice still an octave higher than normal.

With a feeling of trepidation that did not fit the situation, Tara turned in the direction of the bed. Her gaze clouded, troubled by what she saw.

"W-what happened?" she stammered.

Willow was no longer in any state to speak. She simply shook her head.

Because before them, nestled in a heap of blankets, was a tiny, blonde baby. She was curled up contently, a thumb stuck between her lips as she drew deep even breaths.

"Buffy?" Tara whispered, horror struck.

Large eyes peeled open slowly at the name. The small form awkwardly rolled over to get a look at the two new people in the room.

"Baby." Willow said, brain still effectively fried.

And then a small mouth opened, revealing only a partial set of pearly white teeth. It was almost endearing.

Until a terrible wailing noise pressed up from that tiny chest and filled the room.

* * *

Dawn hated mornings with a fiery passion. What was there to like about waking up early and going to school with a bunch of miserable teenagers? And besides, she was a key and inanimate objects were not required to be educated last time she checked.

She pushed her half finished bowl of cereal away spitefully and eyed the empty kitchen. A few moments ago, Tara had gone upstairs at the request of Willow. Buffy was still nowhere to be found but that was nothing new. The last two weeks, her sister had only managed to see her off to school twice.

Thinking of Buffy caused her head to throb, a spasm in sync with her heartbeat. The last two months had been literal Hell for her. So much had been divulged and then she had lost her mother. She was so totally alone, a castaway. Everyone had a reason to avoid her and the only person who made her feel even remotely normal - Spike - had been driven off by Buffy.

Willow and Tara were there for her but it was not the same. She wanted, needed, family. But Buffy had cut herself off, acting as if everything was the status quo.

And that more than anything fueled the fury Dawn felt her small body could not contain.

Out of everyone, she was the one who deserved to freak out. She wanted to break things and cry and scream but instead everyone was treating her like a package marked fragile. Why couldn't anyone understand that her world was falling apart? Everything she had ever known, every feeling, every moment of joy and heartache and fear had been falsified by some old men.

Her life now held the surreal sense of a dream - a nightmare. And she could not wake up, could not escape from the feeling that she simply was not real.

A baby was crying.

The noise was so random, it pulled Dawn from her dismal thoughts. She looked up uncomprehendingly at the ceiling as if expecting to find a small child hovering above her.

The sound continued and was joined by other noises. Feet were stomping, someone was yelling, and then something crashed.

Bolting from the table, Dawn ran up the stairs two at a time. Her first thought was Glory had finally made a move. It made sense, the Goddess had not been heard from for ages. She could be attacking Tara and Willow right now. There was no sound of fighting. Where was Buffy?

Reaching the top of the stairs, she looked around warily. The crying had cut off. Her heartbeat throbbed in her ears, a deep pounding which only seemed to grow with the silence.

"Willow?" She shuffled forward, ready to bolt at the slightest provocation.

Buffy's door was partially ajar.

"Tara?" Her tone was creeping into the range of hysterical.

Still no answer.

She was directly in front of the door now, one simple push and… and what?

Gulping, she tried to steady herself. She was a Summers, sister to the Vampire Slayer and daughter to an independent woman who had survived a divorce and raising two girls.

But that wasn't true, was it?

Because she was not really Dawn Summers at all. Buffy was _not_ her sister. And Joyce was _not_ her mother.

Still indecisive over entering Buffy's room, the choice was taken from her as a hand curled around the edge and pulled it open. Dawn's startled hiss was swallowed by Tara's whimper, her eyes widened comically.

"T-tara? What's going on?" Dawn asked desperately. Tara did not seem injured but she was still acting shell shocked.

"Erm… well…" The blonde was cut off by Willow.

"What are we going to do? We don't have baby food or clothes or ANYTHING!"

The words Willow spoke, theoretically, made sense. But the context was completely lost on Dawn. Wordlessly, she pushed the door open farther. Her wild gaze locked onto Willow who was frantically bouncing a small bundle and crooning.

That small bundle had awfully familiar blonde hair.

"Wi-willow, who i-is that?" she asked, petrified.

Tara sighed, coming to stand besides her girlfriend. Her stance was still tense but her features relaxed as she regained control. "Well Dawn… this is your sister."

And right then Dawn knew she was going to need years and years of therapy to get over her childhood.


	3. Chapter 3

The three women clustered around the dining room table, silent. Willow held Buffy in her arms but her gaze was locked on something far away, sight clouded. The small bundle, now wrapped securely in blankets, was radiating warmth. She dared not look down and meet those oversized green eyes, fearful of the familiarity she would find there.

Tara was sitting beside her, calmly going through the same spell book they had used last night. The blonde looked serene, none of the panic she was feeling crossing her features as she carefully read through the pages, clicking her tongue on occasion when she came across something that caught her interest.

Dawn had taken the seat farthest from the others, eyeing Willow's bundle as if it might grow a second head and try to eat her. Her fears were not unfounded. They still did not know what type of magic was at work and, as with anything that happened in Sunnydale, assuming the worst was usually the best option.

Though Tara had ruled out the likelihood of a curse by doing a simple aura check, Willow was not nearly so confident.

"Well I think I know what happened." Tara said, snapping the book shut.

Two pairs of eyes swung towards her sharply. The fourth member was oblivious to what was going on around her. She had caught sight of the sun rays peeking through the curtains, enthralled.

"Is it Glory?" Dawn asked sharply.

Tara shook her head slowly, glancing towards Buffy. "I think the spell we performed last night actually worked."

"But nothing happened after the incantation." Willow reached awkwardly across the table one handedly to check the spellbook herself. "Dawn's wish didn't come to fruition."

"Maybe Dawn was not the only one who made a wish." Tara said, sliding the book closer to the other witch.

Willow grabbed the book gratefully and turned towards the previous night's spell. She re-read the instructions and list of ingredients, searching for any inconsistencies.

"Honey, I don't think so. We did everything right… oh, wait." She trailed off, leaning in closer to read the last few lines of text.

"What?" Dawn's voice was unnaturally high. She rose from her chair, scurrying to Willow's side and trying to read over her shoulder. "What did we do wrong?"

Sensing the panic rising in the younger girl, Willow swallowed and tried to keep the warble from her voice. "We chose this spell specifically because you didn't need to be magically inclined to perform it." Now that she said it aloud, the loophole was obvious.

Dawn, however, was not following. "Will someone tell me why my sister is now a baby!" She screamed, wild eyed as she clutched at her hair.

"Dawn," Tara began, reaching out. The rest of what she was going to say was drowned out by crying, which started softly before erupting into an ear splitting noise.

Willow looked down at the shaking baby in her arms, tiny hands curled into fists as tears leaked from astonishingly bright green eyes. She had never seen such a look of complete misery on a human face before. Soft skin was blotchy and colored red, a wide open mouth revealing a neat partial set of tiny teeth.

"What do I do?" She asked, tears welling in her own eyes.

"You don't know how to calm down a baby?" Dawn had taken a massive step back and was now pressed flat against the wall.

"I was an only child!" She protested. Her parents had always been adamant that one child was more than enough for the Rosenberg household. "The closest I've ever gotten to taking care of a baby was when Xander would get hurt during recess!"

"Hush now, both of you." Tara said, deftly pulling the screaming infant from Willow. "What is it you want little one?" She asked. "You must be hungry."

"We don't have baby food." Dawn protested.

"Someone needs to pick some up. Who's not at work right now?" Tara asked.

Willow brightened. "Oh! We can call Giles. I'm sure he's handled kids before."

Rushing to her feet, she picked up the phone and dialed the familiar number. After several rings, a tired voice finally answered.

"Hello?"

"Giles, it's Willow!" She said excitedly.

"Yes I figured." He replied dryly. "What is this about?"

"Well Tara and I did a spell and it might have kinda backfired or something, we're not sure yet. But anyway now Buffy is a baby and we don't really know how to care for a child so I figured you would know someone because you're an adult and stuff and-"

"Willow! Slow down." Giles said severely. "Now, I'm assuming I misheard you say Buffy is now a baby-"

"No, that's exactly what I said. Buffy is a baby. Listen," she held the phone towards Tara who was still holding the crying child. "Like I said, we think our spell backfired."

Silence.

"Giles? Hey, you still there?" She asked when there was no response.

Finally, a world weary sigh echoed through the device. "You turned the Slayer into an infant? While we are being harassed by a goddess who is trying to destroy the world?"

Well when he put it like that...

"We didn't do it on purpose!" She protested.

"I'll be right over, don't leave the house." He said. "Do you need anything?"

"Umm…" She looked around for a moment. "Baby food, clothes, diapers, maybe a crib I guess. The spell is only supposed to last twenty-four hours but you never know."

"Excellent." Giles said and then, quieter. "Thank god I am no longer employed by the council. I don't think I could explain this one."

The line went dead and she set the phone back down.

Dawn was still near the wall, warily watching but not actively engaging. Tara had managed to quiet Buffy for the moment, though the occasional fussy sob threatened to send everything reeling back out of control.

"Giles is gonna bring us what we need." Willow declared to the room.

Dawn looked up. "Who's taking me to school then?" She asked.

"Um honey, I don't think you'll be going in today. We sort of need your help here." Tara bounced the infant gently against her side.

"Well somebody had better call Xander before-"

They were interrupted as the front door swung open and the final member of the original Scooby Gang entered.

"Everyone's already up and about." Xander said, striding into the room. "Hey Dawnie, sorry I'm a little late. There was an accident over by-"

Willow could tell the moment Xander noticed the baby in the room. His eyes widened theatrically, over-sized frame grinding to a halt. His smile froze in place, the rest of the sentence sputtering out.

"Buffy?" He managed to ask.

Before anyone could give a proper explanation (as if there was one) he toppled backwards in a dead faint.

Dawn approached cautiously. "It's cool, he's breathing." She frowned. "I think."

The loud noise from Xander hitting the floor caused a fresh set of tears from Buffy that not even Tara's frantic singing could soothe. Willow was not sure what divine being she had pissed off to deserve this but as she tried to help Tara, she figured it must have been a major transgression.


End file.
